Certificate III in Early Childhood Education and Care

Government subsidised: $150*

Government concession: $30*

Self-funded: $5000

Textbooks and MCIE T-Shirt: $190^

*This program is delivered with Victorian and Commonwealth government funding to eligible candidates. Eligibility criteria applies.

Enrolment fees include additional resources required for the program and student ID charges. For additional service fees, such as re-assessment fees or Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL), please refer to the Domestic Student Handbook.

^Students can decide whether they wish to purchase soft copy or hard copy textbooks.

Job titles may include:

• Childcare Worker

• Family Day Carer

• Child Carer

• Childcare Assistant

Workforce demand

According to the Victorian Skills Authority, there were 31,021 Child Carers employed in Victoria in 2022, with 2,734 workers required by 2025.

The National Skills Commission indicates:

• There are currently 136,100 Child Carers employed in Australia

• Future growth for this role is at nearly 6%

• Weekly earnings for Child Carers are around $1,059

• 47% of Child Carers work full-time

• 95% of Child Carers are women, with an average age of 33.

Prerequisites

There are no prerequisite qualifications required to enter this program.

Education and skills

Students must complete a Pre-Training Review, meet the Language, Literacy and Numeracy (LLN) skill standards for this program level, and demonstrate they are a suitable candidate for this program.

Regulatory

You must be an Australian citizen or permanent resident of at least 18 years of age.

All candidates require a Unique Student Identification (USI) number. If you do not have a USI number you can apply for one online at https://www.usi.gov.au/students, or you can give MCIE administration staff permission to apply on your behalf.

Students with disabilities

MCIE welcomes all people with disabilities, learning differences and medical conditions. Acceptance in this program is subject to candidates’ ability to undertake all program requirements as discussed in the Pre-Training Review, with reasonable adjustments where applicable.

Digital technology

Students must have sufficient digital literacy skills to access online content, enter answers to written questions and communicate with trainers via email, the student portal and the learning management system.

Industry requirements

Candidates may be asked to provide evidence of the following for work placement (requirements vary according to host employer policies):

• National Police Check

• Working with Children Check

• Flu vaccination and COVID-19 vaccinations

Prior experience

Credit Transfer (CT) and Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) are available. Credit Transfer is free of charge. RPL application fees are $145 per hour. Please click here for more information on RPL fees, terms and conditions.

Blended training delivery

This program is delivered as blended training, both in-person and remotely in real-time via Microsoft Teams, for approximately 7.5 hours per week, with up to 5 hours trainer-directed learning each week.

This course is also available as a traineeship for domestic (local) students.

Assessment

Assessment for this program includes written tasks, long and short answer questions, multiple choice quizzes, group tasks, oral presentations, role plays, scenarios, case studies, work placement journals, logbooks, portfolios and projects. Most assessments are delivered online via the Canvas LMS.

Required equipment

We recommend that students have access to a laptop or tablet to submit their assessments. MCIE provides access to Microsoft Office.